Miss Independent
by INSANITY - BRILLIANCE
Summary: I woke up one morning thinking about wolves and realized that wolf packs functions as families. Everyone has a role, and if you act within the parameters of your role, the whole pack succeeds, and when that falls apart, so does the pack. Unfortunately for me, the only person I had to depend on was myself, I wasn't a wolf and I didn't have a pack. At least that was until I met him.
1. Fear

**Miss Independent  
>Chapter 1<br>"****_Fear"_**

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><p>I can count on one hand the number of times I've experienced genuine fear. It wasn't a pleasant feeling, anyone could tell you that. The increased heart rate, the panicked thoughts, and the trembling of involuntarily shivers that just make you want to vomit definitely weren't things that anyone enjoys. Yet, as much as I hated to admit it, I was afraid and that was exactly how I was feeling.<p>

'_I can't believe that I lost her. How could I lose her? I told her to stay there that I would be right back, but when I turned around she was nowhere in sight,'_ I was panicking, big time. It sickened me that I would lose my daughter. My only daughter… _'Oh I must be a terrible mother,'_ I told myself as I ran down the street in desperate search.

'_Where is she?'_ I looked around worriedly as I searched the beach, my eyes scanning for the familiar blonde head of hair that was my daughter's. '_I can't believe I lost her in this godforsaken place._ '

I tried to remember the name of this town I had wandered to completely unintentionally. It was something like La Rush. I didn't think that was right, but my brain is too frazzled to really care at the moment. I had gotten lost, quite literally. '_Damn my horrible sense of direction_.' It was then that I saw the familiar blonde curls that belonged to my daughter. '_Oh thank God,'_ I breathed with relief.

"Mia!" I shouted not wasting any time gripping her in a tight hug. I pulled back briefly looked over her face, "Where did you go? I told you to wait. Why did you run off? I was so worried; you scared me half to death."

She only stared at me disinterested only being somewhat apologetic. "I'm sorry. I just wanted to see the ocean," she explained with that childlike innocence. I knew that she really didn't comprehend the emotional stress that she had just put me through and I knew it was no use trying to explain to her why I was so worried. It was a parent thing, something I myself didn't learn until I actually became a parent. Anything could have happened to her. She could have been kidnapped, eaten by bears, or scouted to be in a super-secret government operation to train children into spies… Okay the last one was very unlikely I'll admit that, but she still scared me half to death.

A cough sound above us. I hadn't even realized there was someone standing next to my daughter. I was so caught up in my panic and worry. I looked up into a pair of warm chocolate eyes pausing only a second before I had composed myself. "Oh thank you for finding her Mr…" I said standing up brushing some of the sand off of my knees.

"Paul," he told me.

"Right, thank you Paul," I smiled politely. He nodded in acknowledgement. I studied Paul curiously. He had the strangest expression on his face a few seconds ago one mixed with shock and disbelief before he slipped on a mask of indifference. I noted that he was much taller than me standing at least a half a foot taller than my proud height of five feet eight inches. He was obviously of Native American descendent as if the black hair and russet skin wasn't a tip off.

"It wasn't any trouble," he assured me a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth, "your sister already knew the way back. I was just more or less accompanying her."

I looked down at Mia. "Oh, she's not my sister. She's my daughter," I clarified with a laugh. It was true many people mistook her for my younger sister. It was the age difference. With me being only twenty-four and her only being eight it was a pretty common mistake.

Paul seemed a little surprised by the revelation. He quickly masked his reaction however, opting for a more neutral approach. "She looks a lot like you," he remarked.

I noticed that he seemed a little uncomfortable with conversation, but of course the idiot that I was just made things more awkward. "Not really, she takes more after her father," I winced as those words left my mouth. Paul didn't respond to that. "Anyways it was nice meeting you, I have to get going," I smiled again and looked down a Mia, "come on Mia let's go."

"I didn't catch your name," Paul said when he realized I was leaving.

"Oh right of course," I made a face, I was completely spacing today, "Emelia." I held out my hand and he shook it.

Mia waved at Paul with a smile as I took her hand and led her back to the car. "Bye Paul," she called in cheery voice. I heard him chuckle and wave back.

"Bye Mia, Emelia," he said. I turned and gave him a fleeting glance.

I didn't realize I was smiling until I had gotten back to the car with Mia. She slid into the backseat of my 2004 Toyota Camry and shut the door behind her while buckling her seatbelt. I drove silently finally knowing where I was going. Mia was staring out the window watching the lush green pines flitter past the windows.

"I think Paul likes you mom."

Her words were sudden and completely out of the blue it took me off guard. "Why would you think that?" I asked my eyes darting to look in the review mirror.

Mia stared back at me with a thoughtful expression. Her emerald green eyes, much like my own, were serious and above all perceptive. "You didn't see when he first saw you. It was like those old cartoons from the 60's with butterflies or hearts floating around his head. He like stopped what he was doing and completely froze… and you were just… and he…," she tried explaining to me, but it seemed like she wasn't doing it very well and gave up. "He just looked at you differently," she sighed not know what else to say.

I was quite gazing out at the highway that stretched in front of the car. "I think you watch too much cartoons," I remarked sarcastically. Mia just rolled her eyes muttering something under her breath before she went back to staring out the window. I continued to dwell on what she had just told me.

The strange thing was I kind of believed her. Even I noticed something different about that man on the beach. He was looking at me like he'd never seen me before. Okay he had never seen me before, but it was more than that. It was like I was water and he had been lost in the desert for forty years. I really couldn't explain it either, I realized. There was this connection between us, it was beyond rationalization.

It only took about fifteen minutes before I pulled up into the dirt driveway of our new home. A small humble 2 bedroom, 2 bath, Victorian with a wraparound porch. There was already a U-Haul truck parked out to the side under a large pine. "Looks like Cassie beat us here," I said turning off the car.

Mia slipped out of the car and ran to Cassie who was waiting on the porch. I followed popping the trunk and pulling out a box. Cassie was my best friend and has been since we both were little girls. She was my partner in crime, my confidant and the person who cooked for me because let's face it I couldn't cook to save my life. She was practically my sister, although the two of us looked nothing alike. She was your petite, porcelain skinned, china doll with deep blue eyes and blonde hair that was a straight as straight could be, while I was the athletic, tall tanned tomboy with emerald green eyes and light sandy brown hair that was a disarray of messy curls. I wouldn't have been able to raise Mia like I have if it wasn't for her. So when she got a job in Washington and asked to come work with her of course I jumped at the chance. There was nothing waiting for me back east, just my two controlling parents who I'd spend as little time with as possible.

"Did you both get lost?" Cassie laughed already knowing the answer.

"Took a couple wrong turns," I replied, "You know me and my horrible sense of direction. I can't tell left from right." Cassie took the box from my arms I felt the need to protest, but she silenced me with a look. "Gosh it's gorgeous here," I sighed looking around in awe. It really was stunning. I've always loved the color green and here the color green was everywhere and as vivid as it could be.

"Yeah it is, if you can get past the lack of sun and constant rain," she set the box down on the porch.

"I've had enough sun for a life time," I retorted unlocking the door to the house, "maybe I'll get as pale as you."

Cassie scoffed, "Doubt it." Mia ran past me to scope out the house, both me and Cassie laughed at the excited squeal she made when she found her room. Cassie set the box down on the dark hardwood floor in the entryway and looked around the rest of the house. "I have to say I really like this house," she nodded approvingly walking into the living room, "Would you mind if I moved in with you two?"

I laughed at the joke, "Please, I'd love to have you living here. My own personal chef, what could be better?"

"On second thought maybe I won't move in," she joked back, "you're kind of a slob and we both know that you'd pawn off all the chores on me."

"Hey," I cried indignant, "I'm only a slob on the days that have the letters 'T' and 'U' in them."

"Which is like half the week," Cassie pointed out.

I looked around the room we were standing in, appraisingly. The large windows allowed for a lot of natural light to be casted on the dark wood floorboards and crème colored walls. There was a gray and white stone fire place with a dark wood mantle where I could put some pictures that I had stashed away in boxes. On the wall closest to the fire place was a series of built-in bookshelves that Mia could fill with her many books that she constantly was reading. All in all, the house was perfect for the two of us.

"So what do you think?" Cassie asked after I had finished my inspection.

"If I had known moving over two-thousand miles away from my parents felt so liberating I would have done it a long time ago," I remarked.

"Did you even tell your parents you were moving?" Cassie was staring at me seriously. I knew that she thought I probably didn't tell them. The joke was on her however because as a matter of fact I did tell my parents I was moving and it wasn't even the day I was going to leave. That's a milestone for me. It's hard to believe, I know. Usually I don't tell my parent's things until they are actually happening, like right at that moment.

"I called them a week before I was going to move," my tone was offended, but in truth I wasn't offended by Cassie's question mostly because I had actually considered not telling them at all. Just letting them find out when my mother left a message on my phone with some big 'emergency' that would force me to make contact out of family obligation. "Anyways enough about them," I began changing the subject, "tell me about the Inn. You've been working there for a year now Head Chef that's quite an accomplishment."

Cassie blushed slightly under my praise. "I love the job. My kitchen staff is amazing, one of the best I've ever had and now that my best friend is going to be executive manager my life has gotten even better," she had such a happy look on her face. It just made me happier with my decision to move to Forks, Washington. "Oh you'll love working there too. The owner Christy is just the most amazing person, she like a second mom. It's a shame she doesn't come in as much as she used to, but I'm sure you'll get to meet her eventually. The only downside is Steven," she made a face at the name; "Oh I can't stand him. He's just so… I don't know… obnoxious, rude, aloof, the list goes on and on—"

I stayed silent letting Cassie vent her problems to me. She had always talked more than I did. I was fine with it, most of the time. It gave me something to do. Both of us started unloading furniture and boxes placing them in their designated rooms. Mia went about unpacking her books and arranging them just so on the shelves, she had a system; a system that I could never understand.

After moving all the furniture into the house we went about unpacking the important boxes, dishes, clothes, towels, canned food, etc. Cassie and I were in the kitchen unpacking the dishes when the conversation went to the man on the beach and my little freak out.

"So tell me more about this stranger on the beach," Cassie ordered none too politely. I had told her off how Mia had run off when I stopped to ask for directions and the man on the beach, Paul. Our whole encounter had been brief, extremely brief I've only said like two sentences to the guy.

"There's not much more to tell," I told her unpacking a box of dishes, "He found Mia and was taking her back to the car. I didn't really talk to him that much."

"Yeah but you said he looked at you funny," Cassie said. She was pressing me for gossip.

"I don't know what to tell you. He probably wasn't even looking at me, I didn't even see it. It was Mia who noticed," I replied unwrapping the paper from the glass plates, then stacking them on the counter in the kitchen.

"Which just proves that he was looking at you," she pointed out, "Mia is the most perceptive person I've ever met, if she says he was looking at you he definitely was."

I let out a tired sigh. This conversation was starting to give me headache. "Can we just drop this," I pleaded, "That is the last thing I need in my life right now. I just need to focus on Mia; she's all that matters, not some guy whose last name I don't even know."

Cassie's expression changed to one of understanding, "Okay, it's dropped. I won't bring it up again. I promise."

"Thank you," I breathed.

Mia walked into the kitchen then lightening the tension in the room. "Mom where is the box of my clothes?" She asked me looking around.

"Have you looked in the living room?" She nodded. "Then it might still be in the trunk of the car," I pointed to the table, "you can take the keys and get it out if you want." She nodded and took the keys off the table.

Cassie waited for the door to close before she started up a new conversation, "Have you talked to him?"

I knew instantly to who she was referring too. Alec Peterson, aka my high school love, aka Mia's father, aka the man my parents wanted me to marry. "No not recently. He called a couple months ago to talk to Mia. We haven't really spoken since the great schism between our families and we were almost forced to marry."

"He should visit more, or at least call. It's not right that Mia has to grow up without knowing her father," Cassie muttered incensed. She had never been particularly fond of Mia's father… I just keep referring to him as that. It's like I don't even utter his name anymore, he's just Mia's father to me, or not even that because a father would help you raise your child not run away. Not that I blame him for running away, or at least I don't blame him anymore, I understand now.

We were just kids when Mia was born, not even seventeen years old. I would have run away if I could, but I didn't have the willpower to leave Mia. I couldn't leave Mia. The day she was born she became the center of my world and there was no chance in hell I would just leave. Alec was lucky in a way he got away, I didn't. He got to have a future and I, as my mother often put it, had mine destroyed. No I don't blame him the slightest because I don't regret what had happened in the past. Without Mia I would be as unhappy as I was living with my parents, she was my way out of that life, out of that world and I wouldn't change one single thing.

"He tries," I sighed.

Cassie stared at me incuriously. "How can you just stand there and defend him?"

"Simple, I don't hold on to regrets. The things that happened have led me to where I am now," I paused looking around the kitchen, "I wouldn't be standing in the kitchen of my new house with my best friend who I'm going to be working with starting tomorrow. My life is pretty great right now, why would I want to change it?"

She sighed, "Whatever happened to my fiery, rebellious best friend who got into fist fights? I miss her. She wouldn't be so forgiving. That girl would have gotten in the car and drove to wherever that good-for-nothing lump on a log was, kick his ass and order him to see his kid."

I laughed, "You can't force someone to be a parent, they either are or they aren't. Besides that girl that you knew, she had a kid. That changes a person. I've had to put away my boxing gloves and face reality."

"I still say you should kick his ass," Cassie grumbled making me laugh. She really hated him.

"I don't think that would be a gratifying as you kicking his ass," laughed, "Admit it we both know that that's the real issue here. You want to beat him up more than I do."

"So you do want to beat him up," Cassie exclaimed happily.

"I didn't say that—"

"But you implied it," she reasoned.

I wasn't having this conversation anymore. "I'm going to order pizza," I stated grabbing my cell phone and walking out of the room.

"You're only leaving the room because you know I'm right and you can't argue," she called out.

"I can't hear you I'm in the other room," I called back theatrically.

"I know you can hear me. You just don't want to admit that I'm right," Cassie's voice retorted from the kitchen.

"Do you want cheese or pepperoni?" I asked ignoring the matter at hand. Cassie tended to be very stubborn when it came to things like this. I often just chose to ignore her.

"You're avoiding the subject," she pointed out.

I held the phone to my ear after dialing the number. It only took about two rings before someone answered. Cassie was still was saying something about how I hated to lose and that's why I wouldn't say she was right. "Cassie I'm on the phone put a moratorium on you rant for a second," I hissed.

The poor guy on the other end of the conversation waited patiently for me to continue. "Hi, do you guys do delivery?"

"Yes."

"Great. So I need a medium cheese pizza, a medium pepperoni, and a box of those breadstick things with the cheese," I said looking through my purse for my credit card.

"Is that all?"

"Yes," I answered before I gave my address and card number. I hung up the phone seconds later looking at Cassie who was standing in the arch way of the living room. "Okay the pizzas ordered you can continue with your rant," I told her.

"I don't see the point. Clearly I can't talk any sense into you," she commented rolling her eyes, "I guess there's no use in wasting my breath when you're going to defend that man to your grave."

I shook my head, "I'm not defending him; I just understand why he did what he did. He's still an ass."

Cassie laughed at the last part of what I had said. "At least we agree on that. I'm going to go help Mia with that box," she left the room after that was said leaving me alone with my thoughts. I looked around at the living room again a small smile coming to my face.

Things were going to be different here I could feel it. I wouldn't have to be afraid of being alone. I had Cassie and Mia. They were all that I needed and tomorrow I would start my job as executive manager at an Inn where my best friend was head chef. Everything was good, I'm happy. Yet a tiny part of me still feels like something is missing.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

This fic takes place about 6 to seven years after the last book. I love reviews so if you like this chapter please review.


	2. Serendipity

**Miss Independent  
>Chapter 2<br>**_**"Serendipity"**_

Webster's defines serendipity as luck in the form of finding pleasant things not looked for, usually by accident. I've never experienced serendipity. There's a movie about it and everything, but I barely know what that word means. See with me, I would just get the accident. No good luck, no pleasant outcomes; just one big accident that I would probably have to pay for, while the other person gets away scot-free. It's what happened with Mia and it's what happened with basically everything else.

Why should it be any different than that?

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><p>"Yeah okay Cassie," I said speaking quietly into my cell phone, "Yeah, I'm on my way home now. Just went grocery shopping so there's a lot of stuff for you to cook in the fridge." Cassie made a comment about cooking some sort of pasta; I was only really half focused on what she was saying. "Yeah that sounds fine," I murmured griping the steering wheel firmly.<p>

It was difficult for me to see just outside the windshield which made me nervous. On top of being foggy, it was also pitch black and raining. I probably shouldn't have even been driving at that time and definitely not talking on my cell phone and driving. It seemed like the universe was just waiting for the opportunity to drop and accident in my lap.

I had the heat turned up as my little car hummed contently down the highway. That was the nice thing about Forks that unlike Florida the temperature cooled down immensely so I was actually able to sleep with the covers. I couldn't do that in Florida. I was all ways too hot and had to have the fan going so I wouldn't die from heat stroke. "What's Mia doing?" I asked emerging from my thoughts.

"Oh she's fine. Went right in her room and started her homework."

I let out a breathless sigh, "That kid is so weird. I don't know where she gets it. It's definitely not from me." Cassie let out a slight laugh at my comment. Both of us knew that Mia wasn't a typical child. She was incredibly smart, just loved to read. She loved school too, which was just unheard of to me. I wasn't exactly what you would call the perfect student.

I started to zone out again watching the road. Cassie's voice was only a minor presence in the back of my mind as I watched the twists and turns ahead of me. My mind started racing away from me, though nothing was really comprehensible so I didn't pay much attention to it.

I needed to focus.

My thoughts have been so scattered the last few days, ever since I had moved to forks. I found myself thinking about things that I really shouldn't be. Things that I'd really rather forget, the stranger on the beach being one of them.

It was all very peculiar. I would be going about my day and I would see something, something small like the color of caramel snickers I would be eating, and his face would just flitter past my mind. You probably think I'm crazy, hell I think I'm crazy. But that's how things have been the past couple of days.

The last thing I need in my life right now was another man. The last one just worked out so well. Though I don't really regret it, Mia was the best thing to have ever happened to me, it just I didn't need any distractions. Ever since I had Mia I had basically steered off from dating. It was that I wasn't attractive, I'll be the first to admit that I'm pretty damn hot, but it just that when a guy finds out that you have a daughter… well they run for the hills.

Not that I blame them. No single guy in their twenties wants to be tied down by a kid.

There was also Mia to consider. She got very attached to her father and is damn near heartbroken every time he bails on seeing her. I knew that anyone that I let into my life she would get attached to too and I sure as hell didn't want someone else who was going to flake on the both of us again. Mia wouldn't be able to take it and then I would probably end up hunting that person down and killing them.

It just wasn't a good situation to be walking into. Then again this over analyzing wasn't necessary; I just need to clear my mind of all these tedious thoughts.

"Umm, Cassie I'm going to get off and let you cook," I blurted out cutting her off midsentence, "I really need to focus on what I'm doing right now. It's so foggy I can barely see four feet in front of the car."

"Oh, okay. I'll let you go."

"Thanks, I'll be home in a few minutes," I told her before hitting the end call button on my phone. I slid my phone back into the glove box taking my eyes off the road for just a split second. In driver's Ed class my teacher always said that 'it only took a split second for an accident to happen.'

I really should've listened to him.

It all happened so fast. One second I was moving swiftly down the highway and the next there was a sudden impact of my car hitting something big. My windshield cracked and my air bags deployed. I was knocked unconscious for a second or two before I came to with a gash in my head.

I let out a hiss of pain as I gingerly touched my forehead. A bloody crimson smeared on my fingertips. There was a large crack in my windshield from the impact like an overly large spider web that worked its way out from the center of the glass out to the edges. My eyesight was a little unfocused as I attempted to see past the large crack in the windshield. I could see some smoke billowing into the cool summer air or maybe it was just fog. There was something lying in front of me and I couldn't quite make out what it was. It was large and tan, a figure… an _arm_.

"Oh shit!" I cursed loudly moving to unbuckle my seatbelt and practically falling out of the car. This was just not my night. The figure that I had just hit with my car was a human, a _freaking human. _'_I'm going to jail. Oh I am so going to jail,'_ I thought bitterly as I approached the body.

"Oh damn," I hissed seeing the blood seeping from the open wounds. I was having a damn panic attack at the moment. It was bad enough that I had hit a human, but it became even worse when I realized that his man lying before me was utterly nude.

I had just run over a nudist!

This situation couldn't get any more awkward. I had just hit a naked man with my car and he is most likely dead. I'm going to wind up going to jail for vehicle man slaughter. I wasn't aware there were even nudists in the area. I would've thought Washington would be far too cold for their lifestyle, guess I was wrong.

"Please don't be dead. Please don't be dead. Pleasedon'tbedead," I prayed kneeling down searching for a plus. I breathed a sigh of relief went I felt the little thumping in his neck, "Thank God." Knowing that said naked stranger wasn't dead I began looking over the rest of his injuries.

He was definitely hurt; you didn't need to be a doctor to see that. His shoulder was twisted in at a weird angle, probably dislocated, and there was some bone poking out from his side. I attempted to recall some information from General Hospital that would be useful in a situation like this, but I guess I missed the episode where the doctors ran over a nudist. In my observation I also noticed something else about this nudist.

He was surprisingly handsome.

It wasn't as if I was expecting him to be ugly, I just wasn't expecting… well a damn Calvin Klein model. He must lift some serious weights. I wondered briefly how much he could bench—"Damn it Emelia you're getting off track," I berated myself moving the man's head gently careful not to jostle him. I knew that I couldn't just leave him here by the side of the road, however my car was completely wrecked, I definitely couldn't drive it.

Suddenly an idea came to me. "Don't move, just wait right here," I order before running back to my car. In retrospect it was probably pretty stupid to order an unconscious guy not to move. I wasn't really thinking logically at the moment though. "Where is it? Come on where is it?" I murmured digging through the glove box in search of my phone. I swear that I had securely closed the stupid thing before the crash; nevertheless I can't seem to find it now. '_Stupid phone; where are you when I need you?'_

I shuffled some papers aside finally seeing that elusive device and snatching it from the glove box. Quickly, I scurried back to the scene of the crime—'_Great I'm referring to it as a crime. The next thing I know I'm going to be thinking about how dispose of the body.'_ My hands shook a little as I dialed my house phone, hoping that Cassie would pick up. I looked down the deserted highway in search of any other cars as I listened to the ring of the house phone.

" Hello?"

"Cassie I need you to pick me up. I just got in an accident. I ran over someone with my car and before you start critiquing me on my driving skills I need to get this guy to a hospital—," I explained in a rush.

"Sorry. We're not here to listen to your problems, we got our own lives. Get yourself a shrink. _BEEP._"

"Damn it," I cursed. Of course with my luck I'd end up getting the answering machine. "Cassie, stop whatever you're doing, this is important. Put the spoon down, turn off the stove, grab Mia and get in the car. Meet me on the highway around just outside of Forks. I'll explain when you get here," I instructed none too politely. There was no time to be nice about this.

I pressed the end call button with my thumb praying that she had gotten my message. Oh who am I kidding of course she got my message. She always got my messages now all I had to do was wait. I turned around slowly to examine the nudist hoping that in the time I was searching through my car his heart didn't stop beating. Only the thing is when I turned around, said nudist was no longer lying on the pavement.

He was gone, vanished, evaporated into thin air as if he was no more than an illusion. I would've thought I was losing my sanity had I not seen the blood that still painted the black top. At least that meant that I wasn't completely insane as of yet. But now I had another problem to deal with.

Not only have I've gotten in an accident, but I'm injured, my car is wrecked, and I hit a person, who is nude, barely alive, and now wandering in the woods probably utterly confused and disorientated. This was all getting very ridiculous. I didn't want to think about how much it was going to cost to fix my car—_shudder—_ I just need to focus on one problem at a time.

Now how do I find that crazy nudist?

"I told you not to move," I yelled running into the trees where I think he went. Hopefully he didn't go too far. I moved quickly through the trees, walking past fallen logs and moss covered stones. I attempted to walk in a straight line as not to get too lost, nonetheless I knew what I was doing wasn't the best idea.

The further I went into the forest the more I was starting to get anxious. _'What if he's passed out somewhere? What if I don't find him? What if I get lost? Is it still considered a hit and run if the other person runs?'_ The last question kept plaguing my mind. '_Could I really go to jail for this?'_ After all I did nothing wrong, it was him who ran out in front of me. Surely they can't charge me for that?

'_Best not risk it_,' I decided picking up my pace. My eyes strained to see in the darkness. All this would be so much easier if I had night vision. "Marco!" I yelled pausing waiting for a response. Nothing. It was stupid to call out 'Marco' in hopes that I would get a response. I guess that part of me was just hoping his name was Marco or maybe I could get him yell back 'Polo'. I've reach a new low playing Marco Polo with a nudist, who just might be a crazy serial killer, deep in the forest late at night.

This was the part in the horror movie where the crazy killer comes out with a chain saw and hacks me to pieces. Its official the universe hates me. I don't know what I did to piss off the cosmic entities; maybe it was having a baby out of wedlock, that wouldn't make much sense. I'm hardly the first woman to have ever done it and I doubt I'm going to be the last. But for whatever reason I'm here, in the forest, looking for the man that was unfortunate enough to get hit by my car in hopes that I don't go to prison.

My somewhat depressing train of thought was silenced by the sudden vibration of my cell phone. I hadn't realized I was still holding it in my hand.

"Emelia! Where are you? I'm here right now. I see your car, God what happened?"

I recognized Cassie's panicked voice over the phone. "I hit a deer," I blurted out without thinking.

"What?"

The lie escaped my mouth before I could stop it. I had no real reason to lie to my best friend. When I had first called her I had told her exactly what happened, but now I had apparently hit a deer. Perhaps it was my subconscious coming up with a story to safe myself in case I didn't find the nudist. "Umm, yeah I hit a deer. I'm okay, but it was hurt pretty badly. I'm looking for it now with no luck," I explained glancing around at the trees.

"I don't think you're going to find the deer."

I let out a sigh staring down at my feet, "You're probably right. I just feel guilty I guess." I am guilty, so incredibly guilty.

"Well we should probably take you to the hospital to get you checked out. So come out of the woods, hopefully you're not lost."

"Yeah, okay. I'm coming," I mumbled looking at the trees again. '_Please, let him live_,' I whispered oh so quietly so Cassie couldn't hear. Then turning on my heal I marched back out of the forest back to where I had come. Of course when I emerged from the trees Cassie pounced on me and began chastising me on lying about not being hurt. I had tuned most of it out as she drove me to the hospital and Mia was surprisingly quiet in the back seat. She almost seemed as if she were asleep and I would have thought that had I not looked up in the mirror to see her staring out the window into the forest almost as if she were watching something.

When we arrived at the Forks hospital I was ushered into a little hospital room off of the ER to wait for a Doctor Cullen. Grace, the nurse who had sat me on the uncomfortable hospital bed, told me not to move until the doctor had arrived. Cassie had mentioned Doctor Cullen a couple times; they were both on a first name basis. That wasn't surprising, considering how often Cassie is in and out of the hospital due to her klutziness.

It only took a few minutes for Dr. Cullen to make an appearance. I was surprised at how attractive he really was. It was almost too much. I felt blinded. He had the kind of face Michelangelo would have sculpted. Perfectly craved jawline, straight nose, high cheek bones— _'Oh is he saying something right now?'_

"I'm sorry Dr. Cullen could you repeat that?" I felt a little embarrassed staring at him, but managed to catch what he was saying as he repeated himself. It just happened to be some doctor mumbo-jumbo about a possible concussion.

"So how did this happen, Emelia? Are you a danger magnetic like Cassandra?" Carlisle asked curiously as he patched up my head. He had a very light touch as his cool fingers brushed across my forehead.

I felt a smile tugging at the corners of my mouth at his inquiry. "No, Cassie is more of a special case. My injuries have more to do with my driving skills than anything else," I paused at the look Carlisle was giving me, "I hit a deer. Well it ran out in front of me and then I hit it. "

"Deer have been known to do that," he commented

"I thought it was dead too, but then when I went looking for my phone it disappeared, maybe I hit my head a little too hard," I added with a laugh.

Carlisle smiled kindly at me. "Have you felt any dizziness or queasiness since the accident?"

I thought about that carefully. I didn't remember feeling any dizziness and the only queasiness I felt was when I saw the injuries that the 'deer' had gotten. That was probably just the blood. I only remember the overwhelming panic of having run over someone with my car. _Stupid 'deer'._ "No," I answered.

"Any headaches?" He added.

"No."

"As far as I can tell you don't have a concussion, however you might be in shock. Be sure to get plenty of rest, drink lots of water. Don't do anything mentally taxing," Carlisle ordered in the calm controlled manner that all doctors seemed to possess. Granted Dr. Carlisle did have a greater sense of friendliness and warmth.

"Okay Doc," I quipped jumping off the stiff hospital bed. Carlisle lips twitched up in a semblance of a smile before he escorted me back out to the waiting room. Mia was sleeping on one of the stiff padded hospital chairs her head resting on Cassie's arm. I gave a fleeting smile to Dr. Carlisle before joining my worried best friend.

"You ready to go home?" I asked. Cassie gave me a reproachful look. "What?"

"You just got into a car accident and you're acting as if we were just out to a movie or something," she said, eyeing me warily.

"Does my lack of concern bother you?"

"Yes," she hissed careful not to wake Mia. I frowned turning my gaze to her watching as the deep steady breathes of her breathing move her shoulders up and down. I really couldn't understand why Cassie was so defensive. Yes, I got into a car accident, but seeing as I was perfectly fine there was nothing for her to be overly concerned about. This entire conversation was just ridiculous. I was tired and emotionally drained and more than anything just wanted to get home and tuck myself under the warm down comforter of my bed, the sooner the better.

"Cassie, I'm tired. I just want to go home and sleep. Can we please finish this squabble tomorrow when I have more energy to devote to it," I pleaded. My eyes flickered over Mia's face with the overwhelming urge to pick her up and carry her to the car. I tried to ignore Cassie's burning gaze as she studied me, tried being the main focus here. Despite my attempts I felt like I was being lectured by my old prep school headmaster for my outlandish behavior in class, where I had undoubtedly insulted one of my many teachers, again.

Eventually, after what felt like at least five minutes of intense staring, I heard Cassie sigh. It was a clear sign that she was adhering to my request, reluctantly, nevertheless at least she wasn't going to push the matter further tonight. "Alright, come on let's get you two to bed," she stood up from her seat while I hoisted Mia up into my arms. She wrapped her thin limbs around my neck as she snuggled into my chest and rested her head in the crook of my neck. I followed behind Cassie out into the cool night air eager to get home.

The conversation in the car was 'pleasant' if that was the right description. I could still tell that Cassie was still worried and I was too exhausted to tell her that she was being ridiculous. We both chatted mindlessly about nothing just to fill the empty space of sound. The only topic of interest was getting my car towed on Sunday to a mechanic's shop, after that Cassie pulled into the drive way and we walked into the house me carrying Mia in my arms.

* * *

><p>Sunday came quickly enough. It seemed like no time had passed before myself and Cassie were in the car together with the tow truck trailing behind us to take my car to the shop. Mia was at a school friend's house, Claire or Carly I think it was. Her mother came and picked her up and was going to drop her off later that day. I was happy that she was making friends; she needs to be around some normal children.<p>

The mechanic's shop that I found was a family owned business, a little ma and pa shop. They had great ratings and the prices were reasonable. I talked to one of the mechanics on the phone, Jacob Black, and he seemed nice enough over the phone. Cassie had insisted on driving, even after I persisted, "Really Cassie I can drive. I'm okay."

"Nope, not gonna happen. You just got in an accident three days ago. I'm not putting you behind the wheel just yet," she retorted calmly.

I huffed exasperated, "That wasn't my fault. It was the stupid deer."

"Well it's too bad that deer didn't have insurance. Now stop complaining," she instructed.

I scoffed, silently staring out the window. I was pouting I know, but I hated it when people coddled me. We sat in silence until we pulled in front of the shop. The blue painted sign with the words 'Sam's Mechanics' wasn't that original of a name, but it was charming. And when I say charming I mean charming, not my mother's charming which is code 'crap pile'.

We got out the car and shut the doors behind us. Cassie ran her fingers through her hair and I pulled my light jacket around me as a sudden gust of summer wind brought about a chill that gave me Goosebumps.

"Hi can I help you with something?" One of the mechanics greeted coming over to us. He was tall and broad-shouldered. I had to crane my neck to look into his eyes, but when I did they were filled with warmth and kindness.

"I talked with one of your mechanics on the phone, Jacob Black," I said. The giant smiled and pointed to his name tag 'Jake'. "But I guess you're him. Nice to meet you," I held out my hand and he shook it firmly, "this is my friend Cassie." Cassie smiled and shook his hand happily. The sight was comical seeing the two of them standing next to each other. Cassie barely came up to his knees. (Of course I'm embellishing for dramatic effect.)

"Is that the car?" Jake asked pointed to the tow-truck that was lowering my beat up Toyota to the lot. It looked even worse in the day light. The front hood was all bent up as was the frame. The dark blue paint was chipping off and scraped off completely in other places. It makes me wonder how I wasn't injured more than just a tiny cut on my forehead.

"Can you fix it?" I worried that maybe it was just totaled and I would need to get a new car.

"I'm not sure. The wind shield will need to be replace and the hood as well. The frame will have to be straightened out and there's probably some extensive engine damage," he informed me, "It may take weeks just for the parts to come in. Are you sure you don't want to buy another car, it may be cheaper?"

I shook my head, "No. This car is part of the family I can't get rid of it without at least trying to get it fixed."

Jake understood, "I hear that. I've kept my rabbit, even though I've had to replace almost everything on it." He walked around the car, examining it much like that of Dr. Cullen when I was in the hospital. It makes sense if you think about it. A mechanic is really a car doctor. Jake stopped at the hood and somehow wrenched it open with his hands. '_Gosh he's strong,'_ I thought as he poked around the engine.

"How did this happen?"

"She hit a deer," Cassie explained.

"A deer," Jake looked at me incredulously, "that's got to be a pretty big deer to cause this kind of damage. If I didn't know better I'd say you hit a moose or an elk even."

"It may have been an elk," I conceded, "I didn't really get a good look at it."

"Okay we'll just get the paper work filled out," he shut the hood with an audible slam. We followed behind him into the garage. "Embry," he called to one of the other mechanics, "can you get me some of those information forms." The other guy nodded and disappeared into the back.

I looked around at the bustle of the mechanics. A lot of these guys looked almost exactly the same. Tall, broad-shouldered, russet skin, black hair… "Are all of you brothers?" I asked.

Jake chuckled, "Not really, but we kind of are in a way."

I nodded and turned away. That's when I saw him. He had his back to me as he worked on an old dodge truck, but I could easily tell that it was him. I had seen him naked after all.

"You," I whispered, flummoxed, stopping in my tracks. The man stopped and turned to me with a look of confusion before realization dawned on him. My eyes flickered to the name stitched into the uniform, 'Paul'. His eyes examine my face and his expression darkened with a look of concern. Concern for what? He was perfectly fine, completely unharmed. I paused worried that I may have imagined his injuries.

'_No,'_ I told myself,' _I couldn't have imagined that. It was real. He was bleeding and he was unconscious.'_

"You're hurt?" He asked, tensely. It didn't sound much like a question; more of a statement that he was praying wasn't true. He looked, dare I say guilty.

"I'm hurt?" I repeated incredulously. '_He can't seriously be asking me that?'_ He moved towards me and gestured to his forehead. I knew what he was seeing the small cut that Dr. Cullen had carefully patched up. My eyes narrowed, in what I was sure was a glare, "I'm hurt," I repeated again. I felt red hot anger boiling under the surface, '_He can't seriously be asking me that?'_ "You can't seriously be asking me that," I hissed.

He looked at me bewildered, "Wha—"

"I'm hurt then what are you? I saw you, you shouldn't even be standing," I grounded out through gritted teeth. I couldn't explain were this anger was coming from, I couldn't explain why his concern for my wellbeing ticked me off, and I definitely didn't understand why his lack of concern for his own self made me want to wring his neck with my bare hands. _'Oh, he's a masochist,'_ I fought a groan.

"Emelia do you know—"

"And you couldn't even wait for me to call an ambulance! No, you just got up and ran into the forest leaving me to trail after you!"

"You ran after me?" He shouted incensed.

"It was miraculous I didn't even get lost. You could have passed out in the woods and bled out! Do you have any idea how worried I was? Not to mention the oppressive guilt! I lied to my best friend for you," I kept yelling. It didn't even occur to me what I was saying. That I was worried about him, some complete stranger that I had only met once (well I guess twice, if you count the car incident.) before.

Paul had the common sense to yell back. That was a good thing because if he was even remotely apologetic I was gonna hit him. It had been years since I had been in a good fight. And right now, oh boy was I itching for a fight. I had never wanted to hit something so much before and Paul was standing six inches away from me. He so much as uttered the word 'sorry' and he was going to lose some of those pearly whites. "You didn't have to do that! I didn't ask you to do any of that!"

"No, of course you didn't," I screeched, "YOU WERE UNCONSCIOUS! AND I'M SORRY I'M NOT THE TYPE OF PERSON WHO LEAVES A BLEEDING, INJURED MAN ON THE SIDE OF THE ROAD OR WANDERING OFF INTO THE WOODS! BESIDES EVEN IF I WANTED TO LEAVE YOU I COULDN'T," I waved my arms, gesturing wildly towards my car, "MY CAR WAS WRECKED BECAUSE OF YOU!"

"BECAUSE OF ME? I WISH TO REMIND YOU THAT **YOU'RE **THE ONE THAT HIT ME WITH **YOUR** CAR! IF ANYTHING THIS WAS YOUR FAULT," he bellowed defensively.

"MY FAULT! _**My **__**fault**_? Oh that's rich," I sneered, "You're the one who ran out in front of me like a deranged deer."

Paul towered over me, standing at least a good six inches. He face was contorted with a massive scowl and his fists were shaking with the heat of his anger. "Well maybe if you had been watching where you were going," he spat out, "you wouldn't have to repair your car to begin with."

"WELL FYI SASQUATCH, I WAS WATCHING WHERE I WAS GOING! I JUST WASN'T EXPECTING A NAKED MAD MAN TO COME DASHING IN FRONT OF MY DAMN CAR!" I spat back, viciously. Paul was quiet now contemplating something as I was trying to catch my breath. He was breathing hard too. I had realized that at some point we had moved even closer to each other. We were only breaths apart now, our noses almost touching. I kept staring into Paul's eyes as his breath fanned over my face. They were so pretty, dark brown with flecks of gold near the pupils…

"Are you two gonna kiss?" Cassie's voice broke me out of my trance. I turned around to see her and Jake smiling like buffoons. They apparently thought this whole situation was hilarious. I had forgotten that they were even there. "I mean you have this Mr. and Mrs. Smith thing going on," Cassie looked pointedly at Paul and then at me.

"Jacob you'll call me when I can pick up my car?" I asked ignoring Cassie's statement.

"Yeah, sure," he laughed, "I have your number I'll call you."

"Okay great," I said joylessly. I turned and moved away from Paul. "Come on Cassie let's go," I hollered over my shoulder as I walked out of the garage.

"Aww… you two aren't going to fight anymore. I was just about to get popcorn," she pouted, trailing after me.

"I'm driving. Hand me the keys," I demanded. Cassie must've sensed something in my voice because for once she didn't argue. She tossed me the keys over the roof of the car which I caught. Then quickly we were driving down the road. My hands gripped the steering wheel in front of me until my knuckles turned white. I was just so, so angry. I couldn't stay there anymore. Part of me wondered what might have happened if the two of us had been alone. Would we have kissed?

That thought sent shivers down my spine. '_No,'_ I decided we would not have kissed. Probably beat the crap out of each other, but we wouldn't have kissed. In fact it I was positive it was only because we were surrounded by people that one of us didn't end up punching the other. It's ironic that the man I hit with my car is now the one who is going to fix it. Serendipity sure has a funny way of fucking up my life.

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><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

**Here's chapter two finally! I had a small mental break down while writing this. There was a word I need to use, but I couldn't for the life of me figure out how to spell it or pronounce it. And then my dictionary disappeared. It ended with my hyperventilating and drinking lots of water. (pew) But I figured it out: **

**Masochist - The word of week. **

**I just want to point out one thing, while Emelia and Paul were arguing Cassie was filling out the paper work. And Jacob of course knew that Paul got hit by a car, he just didn't know by who until now. And he of course knows that Emelia is Paul's imprint which is why he's smiling like a buffoon. Cassie is only smiling because she enjoys watching Emelia get into arguments with people. That happened much more when they were children.**

**I'm considering on writing the next chapter in Paul's Point of Veiw, but if you guys don't want that I could stick with Emelia's Point of View. Leave your comments and opinions in the reviews. I love reviews and follows and favorites.**


	3. Surprises Paul's POV

**Miss Independent  
>Chapter 3<br>****_Surprises_**

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><p>I had never been one for surprises. As a child the only surprises I liked was presents. As an adult I realized that most surprises suck. It's like the <em>Chance<em> and _Community Chest_ cards in _Monopoly_. You may get something good, but more often than not have to hash out fifty bucks to each player.

* * *

><p>"Hi Paul," Emily greeted waddling through the front door, her protruding stomach making it difficult for her to move around like she used to. She was like my mother; in fact she was a mother to everyone in the pack. It was nice to see that she was finally becoming a mother in the truest sense of the word. Pregnancy suited her well and even though her morning sickness and swollen ankles made it difficult I knew that Emily was excited for the baby to come.<p>

"Okay girls can you put those bags in the kitchen for me," Emily turned around and addressed someone behind her. From where I was sitting I couldn't see who they were, although I heard two sets of footsteps as they disappeared around the corner and two girlish giggles. "What's wrong Paul?" Emily asked taking a seat on the stool next to me.

I didn't answer her. I didn't need to. Emily being Emily figured it out within seconds. "She doesn't hate you," she assured me.

"I know that. I'm just not sure how I'll be able to talk to her," I told her, "Until she ran me down with her car I didn't even know she was still here. I'd thought she'd left."

Emily laughed, "I wouldn't worry about that, Paul. The spirits seem to enjoy throwing you two together quite literally." There was something in her words, a feeling that I couldn't pinpoint. It was almost smug as if Emily knew something that I didn't. What that could be, I didn't know.

"Aunt Emily, can we make chocolate chip cookies?" Claire asked bouncing out of the kitchen.

"Of course Sweetie," Emily smiled at her niece. Claire had become a constant presence in the house since the day that Quil had imprinted on her when she was only two years old. She would often hang out at Emily's after school, until her mother came and picked her up to take her home.

Emily hoisted herself up for the stool without much difficultly. She turned and looked at someone over my shoulder. "Mia, do you want to help?" She asked.

"No; thank you, Mrs. Uley. I'm kind of inapt when it comes to cooking," a soft voice answered. I froze at the sound.

I knew that voice.

"I'll just sit next to Paul and watch." I twisted myself around and stared at the small girl. She was exactly as I remembered. Blonde curls, petite, green eyes… her mother's green eyes. I was shocked. This was what Emily was talking about only moments before.

I was so caught up in my own thoughts that I didn't realize that Mia had sat down next to me. "Hi Paul," she chirped.

"Hi?" I said not sure of what else to say. _Why was she here?_

As if she heard my silent question, Emily suddenly chimed in, "Paul this is Claire's friend from school. She's hanging out here until her mom can pick her up after work." She said this as if she didn't know the significance of the little girl sitting beside me. This wasn't just some random friend of Claire's; this was Mia, my imprint's daughter. Emily knew this, the entire pack –both packs knew this.

"Where does she work?" I asked.

"The Blue Heron Inn," Mia answered.

"Really?" I had heard of that place, even drove past it a couple of times. It was a nice little hotel down the coast. Of course I hadn't actually ever found a reason to go see inside, but from the outside it looked fairly decent.

"Yep. Mom's the executive manager," she told me.

"So Mia," Emily cut in, "how do you like Forks?"

"I love it! Yesterday, I saw a deer in our yard. We lived in the city before so I never really saw any up close before," she told them.

"And the new house is working out well?"

The little girl nodded. "Yeah," she chirped, "for the most part I mean. There are some problems with it that need fixing. Mom's been doing most of the little stuff. She replaced all the hinges on the cabinets in the kitchen and switched out the deadbolt that wouldn't lock, but there are things that she doesn't know how to do. There are a couple boards on the porch that are rotted through and need replacing. Her foot went through it the other day, so she put one of those orange traffic cones over it until we get it fixed."

I frowned at that. '_Why would she need to know how to do things like that if she's married? Why isn't her husband doing those things for her?' _ "Isn't that something your dad would do though? Where is he?" I asked curious. Something like that really shouldn't be put off for too long. It was a hazard, especially when there are kids involved.

Mia was quiet for a moment as she thought over my question. "I guess, theoretically speaking, he should. I mean that's something dads do, right? I don't really know. My mom says that he's on the lam which I guess is another way of saying _in the wind_." She explained thoughtfully, "He only calls every couple of months. Last time he called I think he said he was in St. Louis or Philadelphia – I don't remember which. I've only really seen him a handful of times."

As she finished speaking the image that I had in my mind of the two of them had completely shattered. My imprint wasn't married. She was by herself; a single mom raising her daughter, who was quite frankly the most adorable little girl I had ever met, all by herself. I didn't know what pissed me off more. The fact that Mia's father had left Emelia to raise their kid alone or that the prick didn't even bother to visit his daughter or even contact her on a regular basis to tell her where the hell he even was.

My fist clenched by my side as I tried to subdue the tremors in my hand. "Oh," I said feeling Emily's eyes on me as I spoke, "If that's the case then I wouldn't mind helping fix things like that. I know a couple of guys who could help out, one of them is even a carpenter. I'm sure that he could do it for free or at least a cheaper price than your mom could get normally."

Mia's smile beamed at me and I felt myself smile start to smile back. It would be impossible to stay angry when that little girl was looking at me like that. I wonder briefly if that's what Emelia would look like when she was happy and not yelling at me. "Really?" She asked hopeful.

"Sure," I shrugged crossing my arms and placing them on the counter top.

"That's great. Thanks Paul," she wrapped her tiny arms around me giving me a hug. I loosened one of my own and hugged her back gently. '_How could her father not want to see her? If she were my daughter I wouldn't be able to stay away.'_

"Aunt Emily, are you crying?" Claire wondered; pulling my attention from Mia. Emily was dabbing at her face with a dish towel smiling. Her eyes caught mine and her smile widened before turning to her niece.

"It's alright, Sweetie." She assured her, "It's just the pregnancy hormones. Sometimes I tear up for no reason at all."

All three of us looked at her as if she were crazy when she continued placing cookies on the cookie sheet humming to herself as she worked. I glanced over at Mia who smiled up at me again, "Probably best not to question it."

"You're probably right," I chuckled.

I ended up staying at Sam and Emily's house four a couple hours after that. Mia and I talked for most of that time. She told me about her old school and her new one. We talked about the book she was reading, _Alice in Wonderland,_ and also the music that she listened too. I was surprised when she was able to list the majority of classic rock hall of fame, claiming that her mother was a big oldies fan.

It was sometime during this that the girl had persuaded me to go pick up her mom at the Inn. I wasn't sure how it happened. All I knew was one minute we were debating the Beatles greatest hits and the next she was calling her mom's friend, Cassie, and asking if I could give her a ride instead. Now I was driving down the highway clenching and unclenching my fists on the steering wheel.

To say I was nervous was an understatement. I was beyond nervous. The last time I had seen her we were both practically at each other's throats. It was only when I noticed how close we had move toward each other that I panicked. I had come so close to kissing her. It would've been easy –if only I turned my head down half an inch more. However that couldn't happen, I didn't want it to happen. So when she pulled away I was relieved.

I didn't love her.

I knew it was only the imprint bond drawing me to her like we were the north and south end of a magnet. I had been in love and probably still was if I thought about it. Rachel, Jacob's older sister, had been my entire world. When we were together I was sure that she was it for me. I wanted nothing more than to marry her and have 2.5 kids and a white picket fence – the whole American dream cliché. I wanted that, but now… I didn't think that would ever be possible.

It wouldn't be the same without Rachel.

No offence to Emelia or her daughter, but I couldn't be the person they needed me to be. I wasn't going to be Mia's dad. And I definitely wasn't Emelia's husband. I would accept the imprint and not fight it; however I had decided that I wouldn't fall in love with her. I would keep my distance and hopefully she would keep hers. There was no reason to make this more complicated than it needed to be.

I turned into the Inn's parking lot parking my Ford Pickup off to the side. I pulled the keys out of the ignition and sat quietly for a moment trying to psych myself up. "You're just giving her a ride," I muttered, "There is no reason to get stressed out about it." Taking a deep calming breath I opened the door and stepped out onto the paved ground.

The Blue Heron Inn was a moderately sized hotel located about half way between La Push and Forks. The building was styled more like a house with a large wraparound porch and a creaky wooden swing. There were rose bushes planted in the flowers beds and the sun was shining through the tall pines casting streams of light on the painted white surfaces giving it a hazy glow. I thought it looked a lot like a place out of that fairytale book Mia was reading, the waist-coat rabbit's house.

Inside it was just as welcoming as the outside. The small foyer and sitting room was a lot more open than I thought it would be. There were two large tan leather couches positioned in front of a dark stone fireplace. Off to the side was the dining room that contained about twenty or so tables. It was a warm setting with light tans, crèmes, and dark browns off set by the strategically placed pillows, throws, and flower filled vases around the room that provided splashes of greens, blues, and yellows.

I could see why people would want to stay here.

My eyes scanned the room looking around for the familiar head of curly brown hair. I saw her almost immediately standing behind the front desk talking to a petite blonde. I watched them a moment making no move to approach the desk. They appeared to be in the middle of a very heated argument, but were still making an effort to keep their voices down.

"What do you mean you can't give me a ride?" Emelia hissed; her voice carrying over the quiet melody of piano music playing softly in the background.

The blonde gave her what I guess was an apologetic look. "I scheduled a dentist appointment today and I completely forgot about it. I have to leave right now and I don't have time to drive to La Push to pick up Mia and then drive to Port Angeles," she told her.

"So what am I supposed to do?" _'Good question,'_ I smirked as I realized that the little blonde woman was none other than Cassie. I knew that there was no dentist appointment. It was only a ploy so I would be the one who had to give her a ride.

"I got you a ride. I wasn't going to leave you here stranded." Cassie said walking out from behind the desk lugging her purse over her shoulder, "I called Claire's Aunt's house and she said that she would get a friend to come and pick you up." She looked over at me then with a smirk. Emelia's eyes quickly followed widening comically before turning to her friend.

"You can't be serious!"

Cassie laughed at her outburst. "Don't be so dramatic," she said brushing past her, "He can't be that bad. Beside if there's nothing to talk about you could always ask him about your car. I gotta go. See ya tomorrow, Mel." She walked past giving me a wink on the way out as Emelia looked on disbelievingly.

I almost felt sorry for her. She hesitated for a moment, debating whether or not to approach me, before making up her mind and coming forward. She gave me a small smile, which looked more like a grimace than anything else. "I have to get my purse, and then we can go." Clearly she was trying to be polite, but I knew she would rather be anywhere else.

"That's fine. I'll wait here," I said. She nodded in acknowledgement before returning to the desk. She mumbled something to the other manager working there, giving him instructions to tell Kenny to tell the handyman that one of the doorknobs was loose in room 13, and then grabbed her handbag resting the strap on her shoulder as she made her way back over to me.

She followed me outside to my truck. I walked around the passenger side door and opened it for her ignoring the bewildered look she gave me for it. It had long since become a habit to open doors for women as my father had ingrained the lesson into me to always be a gentleman, which meant opening doors and carrying bags. I didn't care if she thought it was strange. Closing the door after her, I quickly walked around to the driver's side and climbed in.

I put the keys in the ignition and turned. The engine roared to life drowning out some of the awkward silence that had settled over us. It was only a fifteen minute drive to Sam and Emily's house. Hopefully during that time neither of us would feel the need to speak and say anything to make the tension worse.

I felt Emelia's eyes on me as I drove down the highway. She hadn't said a word for the first five minutes, yet I could tell that she desperately wanted to. The feeling was almost screaming at me in the small space. I almost wanted to tell her to spit it out already, but I knew that doing so would probably result in another argument. And the last thing I wanted was to get into a screaming match when neither of us could leave.

"Thank you," she whispered softly. I glanced at her questioningly. "I mean for giving me a ride and everything. I really appreciate it," she added shifting so she was facing more towards me, "And I'm sorry that I hit you with my car. I don't think I made that clear the last time, but I really am sorry."

"I'm sorry that you hit me with your car too," I replied jokingly, "It really hurt."

This earned a laugh from her as she tried to cover it up with her hand. A small smile pulled at her lips as I stared wondering why she didn't smile like that more often. It was certainly a step up from her angry face or the pained grimace that I witnessed earlier. "You're funny," she remarked.

"Don't sound so surprised," I retorted sarcastically.

"I'm not –" She began to protest when she noticed the smirk on my face and laughed again, "Oh, you almost got me with that one." I relaxed a little as the awkwardness seemed to dissipate. "Can I ask you a question?"

"You just did."

Emelia rolled her eyes. "I mean a different question, smart ass."

I chuckled at the insult. Who knew that my imprint would have so much bravado? I guess it made sense being who I was with my temper; the spirits thought I would need someone who could keep up. The funny thing was that when I thought of my imprint, I always thought it would be some quite mousy girl, someone who would've forced me to learn control as not to scare her, not someone like the spitfire sitting next to me. Rachel had always more or less avoided subjects that she knew would set me off, but Emelia did the opposite. She was headstrong and stubborn as a mule as was proven last Sunday. There were few people I knew that would pick fights with me not to mention not back down when I snapped back.

Emelia took my silence as assenting. She leaned back into the seat stretching her legs out and staring out the windshield watching the road ahead of us. "So how long have you been a Nudist?" She asked casually.

The truck swerved a bit in my shock. "I –I'm not," I sputtered.

She gave me an incredulous look. I had no clue where she got that idea from. Okay, so maybe I did spend more time naked than the average person and had a habit of not wearing a shirt unless I was working at the shop. And yes, I was more comfortable seeing naked people especially when it pertained to my pack mates… _Well shit. _

"You're not? Then why weren't you wearing any clothes when I ran you over?" She asked confused if not a little curious.

I kept my eyes on the road as I tried to come up with a plausible answer. There was no way I was going to tell her the truth. That the reason I was naked was because I had been running patrols and I had just so unfortunately crossed over the highway at the wrong time and found myself knocked unconscious the resulting impact causing me to phase back into my human form. It wasn't normal to be wandering the woods naked late at night, but for the life of me I couldn't think of one explanation that would sound normal. _'Maybe I should just let her think I'm a nudist,'_ I thought.

It would certainly be an easier pill to shallow.

I glanced over at Emelia who was still watching me waiting for an answer to her question. I opened my mouth saying the lamest excuse I could think of. "I got locked out."

The confusion on her face grew as her eyes brows furrowed and her lips puckered together. Then she scrunched up her nose as if she smelt something awful. "You got locked out," she repeated.

I nodded.

"Of where? Your girlfriend's house?"

That actually didn't sound like a bad idea. "My ex-girlfriend," I lied. I wasn't currently seeing anyone, but I saw no harm in this little white lie.

"So your girlfriend locks you out of her house naked and forces you to go wandering off into the woods? Why? I mean what kind of person doesn't even have the decency to return your clothes to you?" I wasn't sure if she wanted me to answer that or if she was just thinking out loud. As it turned out it was the latter, "What a bitch."

I grunted focusing my attention back on the road. We were almost to Sam and Emily's house. I could feel Emelia shift in her seat again. "You were having a pretty crappy night, huh?" She asked.

"Yeah."

"And I just had to come and make it even worse," she laughed finding the whole situation funny. I guess I would've too if I had heard it happen to someone else.

I turned the truck down the dirt road that lead to Sam and Emily's house. The tires rolled over familiar bumps and small potholes until I pulled off down the gravel driveway. Parking the truck under one of the many pine trees that lined the property I was surprised that the trip wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. In fact, it was almost pleasant. After the first initial conversation the tension had started to ease and now had completely dissipated leaving a friendly peace that neither of us felt the need to break.

Emelia gave me a small grin before she wrenched open the door and slipped from the truck. I got out on my side pocketing the keys and trailing behind her as she advanced toward the house. She waited for me on the small overhang in front of the door. She looked a little unsure whether to knock or not and looked toward me for some sign of what to do.

I reached past her, my arm bushing against her side, and grasped the door knob. She tensed glancing at me and I tried to ignore how my skin tingled as I pushed the door open and pasted by. I heard the familiar voices of Sam and Emily, Jared and Kim, and Embry and Avery. They all turned their attention to us when we entered and Emelia shrunk a little behind me hesitant to proceed.

Avery's face lit up though as she jumped up from the couch and ran toward me pulling me into a bear hug. "Paulie I've missed you," she said once she pulled away, "How have ya been? I heard that there was a bit of an accident involving you and lass on the motorway."

I glared over her head at Embry who looked away sheepishly. I knew that he had been the one to tell his imprint. For the past week I had been the butt of every joke amongst the packs. I had hoped that since Avery had been away at college in England for the past six months and traveling with Embry for the last four weeks she wouldn't hear about it. But of course, Jake told everyone once he found out, and Embry just had to tell her too. She was bound to tease me worse than the others did.

Avery and I had been friends since our junior year in high school. When her brother, Spencer, phased she was more or less dragged into the supernatural with him. She took everything in stride, not even batting an eye lash when her brother almost clawed her face off or when a few months later when she was told about Embry imprinting. She was like a little sister to me, even though technically she was older by three weeks.

"I've been good Avery. How 'bout you? How's Oxford?" I asked glossing over the subject of the accident.

"Hectic," she laughed stepping back, "I had been swotting all last term and living off nothing but those instant cup-a-soups because I've been too busy to get to the market for food. I never thought Uni would be so draining. I'm just glad that it's over and that I'm on holiday for a few more weeks."

"You both have good timing we were just about to have dinner," Emily said pulling a large casserole dish from the oven. I felt Emelia start to move past me to get a better view of the Emily in the kitchen. She opened mouth and what I guessed was about to decline, but Avery cut her off.

"No, we insist. There's always way too much food. Besides I could use another woman's perspective," she said grabbing her hand and towing her over to the couch. She sat her down next to her after getting Embry to scoot over. "You see we've been trying to plan our wedding and my fiancé has been counteracting every suggestion I've made so far. I want a small ceremony; he wants to invite all of my extended family. He wants it inside and I want it outside. I wanted to get married during the summer and he wants us to get married on Christmas. To be honest we're both having a bit of a row," she explained sending Embry an exasperated roll of her eyes.

"It would be easier if you weren't so stubborn," Embry chuckled good naturedly wrapping his arm around Avery's shoulders and brushing his lips against her cheek.

She turned to him with a smile showing she wasn't as upset as she portrayed herself to be. "Oh darling, you're far more stubborn than I am," she quipped.

"You're both equally as stubborn," Jared said derailing the upcoming bickering from the other couple, "You've been fighting about this for the past forty-five minutes. Kim and I didn't have nearly as many disagreements as you two."

"That's because you two eloped in Vegas," Sam pointed out, "The only thing you two had to agree on was whether or not you wanted the Elvis impersonator to conduct the ceremony or the priest. It took a long while to plan mine and Emily's wedding."

"What planning?" Emily scoffed disbelievingly as she placed a stack of plates on the table, "The reason it took so long to plan our wedding was because whenever I asked for your opinion on something your response was always: '_Whatever you want Babe is fine with me.'_ It was Avery and Sue who helped me out the most."

I wanted to laugh at the scene playing out in front of me. Emelia looked so bewildered as she tried to keep up with the conversation; her eyes darting around to each person as they contributed something else. Avery having grown tired of all the bickering finally exploded. "Bleeding hell!" She exclaimed, "Why is it that weddings are so stressful? I swear I'm about to call the whole thing off. Who needs a stupid marriage certificate anyways?"

Embry looked alarmed at that shooting her a worried glance. "Really you want to call if off?"

"Well no," she admitted, "but I can't plan a wedding if neither of us compromises. Did you have this much trouble planning your wedding?" All eyes turned toward Emelia at the question, who shifted on the couch uncomfortably, waiting for her to answer.

"I've never been married," she told them.

"But you have a kid?" Jared wondered confused.

"Found a way around that."

"Oh I see," Avery said regarding her curiously, "Well do you want to get married?" I froze wondering how this conversation had gotten here. Emelia didn't seem to know how to respond to the somewhat intrusive question.

I was about to step in and say something, but Emelia beat me to it. "Avery it's inappropriate to propose to me in front of you fiancé," she joked.

This elicited a laugh from the group. "No, but seriously," Avery said, "Is it something you'd consider?"

"It depends on the person," she replied thoughtfully, "As of now there's really no one I feel that strongly about. I guess if I met someone that made me feel like that, maybe, but that's not likely to happen right now so I'd say no."

I didn't particularly like how they staring at the two of us. Not to mention the questions they were asking were too personal and I didn't want to know the answer to them. Sure, I understood that they were only trying to help, in their somewhat annoying way, and they wanted to make sure that my imprint wasn't some sort of crazy psychopath. Luckily, Emelia didn't seem too bothered by it. She answered their questions thoughtfully and honestly; and they were all pleased by her answers.

"Emily is it alright if I wash up before I eat?" She asked.

"Oh yes. The bathroom is upstairs, second door on the right. Claire and Mia are in the bedroom watching a movie," Emily told her.

Emelia nodded and headed up the stairs. Once she was out of hearing range Avery immediately pipped up. "Well, I like her. She seems like a charming girl. You did good Paul," she patted me on the back.

I sighed brushing off the complement and moving into the kitchen. None of them really commented on my lack of enthusiasm toward my imprint. They all knew that I didn't want anything to happen between the two of us. Emelia came down the stairs with Claire and Mia in tow just when Emily had finished putting all the food on the table. We all sat down and ate.

The majority of the conversation was focused on Emelia and Mia. They asked them questions about where they lived before, what it was like and a lot of random little things. In turn Emelia inquired about Emily's pregnancy and Avery and Embry's wedding. I mostly sat and listened, providing input occasionally. Then we all climbed into my truck, after Emily had loaded Emelia down with leftovers, and I drove them home.

She thanked me again when she got out of the truck. "I guess I'll see ya around sometime," she said with a grin, "You are technically my mechanic."

"We probably will. Emily invited to that bonfire Barbecue, so I'm sure I'll see you then." I replied.

"Yeah, about the bonfire," she said shifting the tubberware containers in her hands, "I don't know where First beach is and I don't have a car –"

"I can pick you up," I offered.

"Really? That'd be great actually. Thank you, Paul."

"It's no problem," I smiled, "I'll pick you up around four on Saturday."

She nodded saying goodbye again and I watched as she climbed the porch steps up to the front door where Mia was waiting. The little girl twisted around and waved at the truck as I started to pull away from the house. As I left I notice the garish orange traffic cone sitting by the front door.

They really needed to get that fixed.

* * *

><p><strong>Author's Note:<strong>

So I don't know how long it's been since I updated this story. Probably not a good sign. Hopefully this chapter makes up for it. I've been kind of busy lately with real world stuff and to be perfectly honest I didn't feel much like writing anything. I'd just like to thank all of you who continued to read, favorite, and follow this story even though I may be a flake when it comes to keeping up with my stories.

As always constructive criticism is encouraged. So please review and tell me what you think.


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